From war-ravaged Lebanon to Penetanguishene: One man’s journey

(Editor’s note: MidlandToday received the following submission from Waypoint Centre for Mental Health Care. Friday was PTSD Awareness Day — a time to shed light on the struggles of trauma survivors and highlight the transformative power of hope, support and recovery).

When Zack Soujah arrived in Canada in 1989 as a 17-year-old refugee from Lebanon, it was as though he had escaped Hell.

“I thought I’d died and went to Heaven,” he said, recalling his first impression of his new country.

But while he had left the civil war behind, the trauma had followed him. Zack lost his father and older brother during the conflict, and he was just a teenager when a neighbour shot him twice for being a different religion, leaving him in a coma for two months.

“Those were the worst years of my life. I had no childhood.”

Life in Canada offered peace, but not peace of mind as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) crept in.

“I was waking up in the middle of the night, sweating and screaming,” he said. “My family thought there was something wrong with me, that I was just no good.”

He faced overwhelming challenges: Learning English, continuing his education, and finding the right mental health supports. Despite the odds, Zack kept moving forward. His family relocated to Ontario, where he finished high school, enrolled in trade school and eventually landed a job cleaning aircraft at Pearson International Airport. He got married, had children and rose through the ranks to become a security supervisor.

But trauma lingered. When his marriage ended and he lost his job, depression, anxiety and substance use took hold.

“Everything was collapsing at one time,” he said. “I felt I had no purpose. I started abusing my medications and, before you know it, I wanted something stronger. I got into cocaine and then crack cocaine.”

Over the next several years, Zack struggled in and out of hospitals, detox centres, and treatment programs. He attempted to take his life twice. But an 18-month stay at a treatment centre marked the beginning of a new chapter. “Before I knew it, I was getting the help I needed. I put my ego down and asked for help.”

That’s when he was introduced to Waypoint Centre for Mental Health Care’s Rehabilitation Services. Supported by counsellors, employment and education specialists, and recreation therapists, Zack began setting goals and moving forward. “Since then, things started to get better and better,” he said. “I’ve been rebuilding my life one step at a time.”

He studied hard to improve his English and, last November, proudly became a Canadian citizen. He also gave back through Rehab Services’ (The HERO Centre’s) Recreation Services volunteering programs — gardening and preparing meals for people experiencing homelessness, and participating in developing employment readiness through a supported employment program in partnership with the Town of Penetanguishene. He was offered a part-time job cleaning local parks, and was quickly hired for a summer position after his contract ended.

“It means that I am a part of society. I am contributing and paying taxes,” Zack said. “It gives me a purpose, a reason to wake up and get dressed.”

His journey shows the profound impact of compassionate care. To the Waypoint staff who helped him along the way — not only at Rehab Services, but also the Ontario Structured Psychotherapy program, where he received one-on-one therapy to fuel his growth and recovery — Zack has a simple message: “Thank you.”

If you would like to help Waypoint improve lives and bring hope to individuals like Zack, please visit givewaypoint.com/?form=FUNVXQABVXM.